Tuesday, October 31, 2017

Halloween 2017


Matthew 15:3 Jesus replied, “And why do you, by your traditions, violate the direct commandments of God?
I posted this a couple years ago, but I think about it every year at this time, so let's revisit it. 

Today, we celebrate Halloween. Dressing up in costumes, going to parties, playing games and “trick or treating” for the little kids. But when I ask people what is the significance of the day and what exactly are we celebrating on this “second most popular” holiday in the United States of America?, the answer always seems to be the same: “I don’t know.”

I've listened to a couple Pastors this week explain that there is a confluence of three streams that flow together to form this modern celebration. The first goes back to the Druids, who were the pagan inhabitants of pre-Christian Ireland and Scotland. The Druid or Celtic year began on November 1, which was called “Samhain”. This was their New Year’s day, and consequently, October 31 was “New Year’s Eve”. It was also a combination of a “Harvest Festival” and thought of as a “Festival of the Dead”, for it was said that it was this night that the Earth came to its closest contact with the unseen and spiritual world. Consequently, ghosts, goblins and witches terrified the populous, supposedly destroying crops, killing babies, stealing farm animals, upsetting garbage cans and reeking all sorts of havoc on the people. Bon fires were set upon the hills, either to keep the ghosts away, or perhaps to guide the spirits of the dead back to their homes, where it was believed that the spirits of the deceased on the eve of Samhain find warmth and good cheer in the home of their kinfolk before the onslaught of winter. Therefore, we see a lot of the folk custom of Halloween has come from this Druid celebration.

Another one of them is the custom of “Trick or Treat”. It originated when the people of Ireland went around to homes asking for various treats for the celebration which was to follow later in the evening. Then, when the belief in the reality of goblins and ghosts began to decline, and it was no longer believed that they were really doing these mischievous things, the children decided to help out. So they dressed up in various costumes and put on masks, then went house to house asking for treats, but adding a little something extra … threatening also tricks if they failed to be generous. And so, there were garbage cans upset, gate posts found in trees, and all sorts of pandemonium that took place on that night, supposedly attributed to the ghosts and goblins, but, of course, wrought by the dressed up children.

Deuteronomy 18:9-11 “When you enter the land the LORD your God is giving you, do not learn to imitate the detestable ways of the nations there. Let no one be found among you who sacrifices their son or daughter in the fire, who practices divination or sorcery, interprets omens, engages in witchcraft, or casts spells, or who is a medium or spiritist or who consults the dead.”


The second stream that flows into the modern celebration of Halloween comes from Central Europe, when the Christian church made its attack upon the pagan bastions, destroying the temples of the various heathen gods and goddesses. But it was never able to completely eradicate the pagan worship which reappeared in the “Dark Ages” in the form of witchcraft. One of the important aspects of witchcraft are a number of celebrations each year, which are called “Witch’s Sabbaths”. One of the highest witch’s Sabbaths, the “Black Sabbath” of witches, occurred on October 31. This was a night of feasting and revelry, and imagery includes themes of death, evil, the occult, black cats, bats, mythical monsters and other related Halloween paraphernalia. The source of much of our Halloween folklore today stems from the high witch’s Black Sabbath of October 31 celebrated in Central Europe in the Middle Ages.

1 Timothy 2:5 For there is one God and one mediator between God and mankind, the man Christ Jesus.

The third stream that completes the modern concept of Halloween comes from the Roman Catholic Church. The church was engaged had been engaged in appointing certain days to honor and reverence certain Saints that the church had appointed or declared. There had become so many of these days that it became impossible to have a specific day for each Saint, so they decided to have one day in which they would remember all of the Saints, called “All Saints Day”. In the 700’s A.D., Pope Gregory III changed the date if “All Saints Day” to November 1, and in the year 834 A.D., Pope Gregory IV extended this celebration to the entire Roman Catholic Church. There was a celebration associated with this, on the evening before called “All-Hallows-Mas” or “All-Hallows-Even” on October 31 and it is from these two words that we have the contraction “Halloween”.

Here you see the three-fold origin of the celebration of Halloween. Are you still excited to celebrate it? Well, unrelated, on October 31, 1517 @ noon in WittenbergGermany, a young professor of Theology by the name of Martin Luther nailed his 95 Theses to the University door that sprung into existence the Protestant Reformation and churches. So October 31 is the birthday of Protestantism and the Evangelical faith. Saved by grace alone, saved by Christ alone, and saved by faith alone. Now that’s no trick, but the greatest treat of all.

In Christ, Brian

Monday, October 30, 2017

At Peace with God


Romans 5:1-2 Therefore, having been justified by faith, we have peace with God through our Lord Jesus Christ,  through whom also we have access by faith into this grace in which we stand, and rejoice in hope of the glory of God.”

I remember people saying that one of their loved ones, after living their entire life in unbelief and absent of God, “made peace with God” just before they passed away. I often thought how someone living entirely in a godless self-actualization life, neither knowing could or obeying the Lord, their Maker, could all of a sudden and complete change their heart belief and where their faith lays in the last moments to have peace with God. Yet, we rejoice that the Lord makes his offer and people accept the gift of God for their redemption by “saving” faith in loving “true’ conversion of the soul, regeneration of the spirit and transformation of the heart.

John 3:16-19, 36 “For God so loved the world that He gave His only begotten Son, that whoever believes in Him should not perish but have everlasting life. For God did not send His Son into the world to condemn the world, but that the world through Him might be saved. He who believes in Him is not condemned; but he who does not believe is condemned already, because he has not believed in the name of the only begotten Son of God. And this is the condemnation, that the light has come into the world, and men loved darkness rather than light, because their deeds were evil. He who believes in the Son has everlasting life; and he who does not believe the Son shall not see life, but the wrath of God abides on him.”

The late Pastor Dr. D. James Kennedy says that many people mistake two things for saving faith: (1) Saving faith is not mere head knowledge, like believing certain historical facts. The Bible says that the devil believes there is one God, so believing that there is one God is not saving faith. (2) Saving faith is also not mere temporal faith, that is, trusting God for temporary crises such as financial, family, or physical needs. Now these are good, and you should trust Christ for these, but they are not saving faith! But, true “saving” faith is trusting in Jesus Christ alone for eternal life. It means resting upon Christ alone and what He has done rather than in what you or I have done to get us into Heaven. American Theologian & Pastor R.C. Sproul explains that we are not saved from sin when we accept Christ by saving faith; we are saved by the grace of God from God and His righteous wrath against us, as Jesus explained in John 3 (above). Everyone focuses on “salvation unto Heaven”, but, my late Christian mentor Bill Stiles always said that you have to know what you have been saved “from”, in order to know and appreciate what you have been saved “to”. You, I and everyone else, because of our sin, was going to receive the wrath of God and go to Hell. There is no peace of mind in that knowledge. It takes the Prince of Peace Jesus Christ to redeem and change us. Know Jesus, know peace. No Jesus, no peace. 


Luke 2:14 “Glory to God in the highest, and on earth peace, goodwill toward men!”

The late Pastor Dr. J. Vernon McGee states it this way: The peace that Paul is talking about in Romans 5:1-2, which he lists as the first benefit of salvation, is “peace with God though our Lord Jesus Christ.”  This is the peace that comes to the soul of the one who has trusted Christ as savior and knows that God no longer has any charge against them; that they are no longer guilty. They know that God, who had to be against them in the past for all the sins that they committed against Him, is now for them They know that they have a salvation that is permanent and eternal. This is the peace that comes because of sins forgiven and because everything is right between us and God, through the atoning blood of Jesus Christ. At peace with God, that is a wonderful peace!


In Christ, Brian  

Saturday, October 28, 2017

You’ve Lost that Loving Feeling


Revelation 2:2-5, 7 “I know your works, your labor, your patience, and that you cannot bear those who are evil. And you have tested those who say they are apostles and are not, and have found them liars; and you have persevered and have patience, and have labored for My name’s sake and have not become weary. Nevertheless I have this against you, that you have left your first love. Remember therefore from where you have fallen; repent and do the first works, or else I will come to you quickly and remove your lampstand from its place—unless you repent. He who has an ear, let him hear what the Spirit says to the churches. To him who overcomes I will give to eat from the tree of life, which is in the midst of the Paradise of God.”

This last week, our church continued in a new Sunday sermon series in the Book of Revelation of the seven churches in Asia. Pastor Kyle suggests that if a Christian does not feel blessed highly, worship greatly or feel exceedingly more alive with an extremely deep sense of holiness in Christ, then you would have to wonder if they are focusing on the details of their faith, instead of the object of their faith, missing the “good news’ and making them not “right” with God as they should be, resulting in a cold relationship with the Lord. We can have the motions of sound theology, godly works, excellent biblical teaching, but still have our hearts fading. So, how can we restore the flame of faith and end a cold relationship with God (or anyone else for that matter)?  

Ephesians 2:8-10 “For by grace you have been saved through faith, and that not of yourselves; it is the gift of God, not of works, lest anyone should boast. For we are His workmanship, created in Christ Jesus for good works, which God prepared beforehand that we should walk in them.”

It’s easy for us to play the blame game and say. “If the other person would change, than everything will be just fine”, but truly we need to start “righting the relationship” by thinking back to where we were when Jesus found us. Things can be going seemingly perfect and in an instant (“Bomb”) you have a big moral fall, becoming spiritually disabled. We have all taken a great fall in our sin. But, Jesus came to restore us, give us abundant life today and eternal life in heaven. Remember the height from which we fell and how far God came to rescue us. Then, go back to putting the idol distractions out of business (an idol being anything that we put between our face and God’s). Do the “good” stuff that you did in the beginning; the blessed things that you did in early days of your relationship with the Lord, which have fallen aside.

Psalm 111:4 “He has made His wonderful works to be remembered; The Lord is  gracious and full of compassion.”

Remember that we don’t fall in or out of love; we “do” love. Love is not a feeling. Love and its associated attributes is a choice on our part. Take God’s grace to change the negative past into a positive future to rejoice about. When things go south and take a turn for the worse, we don’t focus on “Where is God?”, but remember how far God has come into this “fallen” world. This is not the Garden of Eden; know that we live in a “fallen” world and we are all “fallen” people to sin. To say that you are not “feeling” it anymore” or “I don’t really care” is really saying that you do care. If you feel far from God, guess who moved.


The gospel of Jesus Christ includes reaching other people who do not know the Lord with the gospel. The “me and God” mentality is killing the message of Christ the Redeemer. Trying to protect ourselves from “harm” of unbelief prevents ministry and spiritual growth that Jesus modeled as a labor of love. Serving others with the warming fire of God in our hearts will be a “labor of love” work that is both rewarding and connecting. The reward for staying connected to the people of God is worth the investment of time every time. This is not mindlessly going though religious rituals, as if on automatic control that losses its impact in the community, nation and world, but is mindful and worshipful transformation.   

Psalm 77:11 “I will remember the works of the Lord; Surely I will remember Your wonders of old.”

The tree I water is the one that grows. A seed is planted, but must be watered in order to thrive. We need to look back and take an inventory to see just how far God has taken you to get you to where you are today. Then, we can see that we are truly moving forwards towards the gates of heaven with a warm heart and not one that is cold and forgotten. Never lose that lovin' feeling for the Lord.


In Christ, Brian


Friday, October 27, 2017

True Paradise


Click on the web-link below and watch this new Christian Science movie trailer coming out.


The Christian community needs to broadcast this movie to everyone we know. Just as millions of people have been taught that godless natural selection by purposeless Darwinian evolution is the true origin of life and very few telling them about the opposing good news of their Creator God and of the Savior Jesus Christ with His forgiveness, salvation, purpose and eternal life in heaven, few churches and Christians communicate the wonderful resources and media available that are produced by great Bible-believing organizations to provide easy to reach and tangible evidence and arguments against the lies of macro-evolution and the associated proclamation that there is no God to a growing secular human, materialistic and hedonistic culture, distracted by egocentric existential philosophy, personal entitlement and endless entertainment.

I cannot tell you how many times, after seeing and hearing the truths that exist that are out there and available, people ask me "Why have I never heard this before?" That's a great questions, since we live in a time when information is at our keyboard, cell phone, smart TV, DVD player, books in libraries and (yes, like this new flick) movie theaters. Without a relationship with our Creator and Savior first, what else really matters? Then, everyone might as well build bigger barns, while they eat, drink and be merry ... like the rest of the world, for tomorrow we die and everything we really live for goes away. 

Romans 10:14 says, How then shall they call on Him in whom they have not believed? And how shall they believe in Him of whom they have not heard? And how shall they hear without a preacher? 

We are commissioned by the Lord to "go" confront the opposing godless worldview that is sending millions to hell and make disciples of all nations and peoples. Can we tell people about a Creator God with His love and mercy towards them, when they cannot believe that message because they have been taught that "evolution" is the ultimate truth and that God is just a nice fairy tale. Their thinking is that if the Bible is wrong on the first verse of the first chapter of the first book, how can they believe any of the rest of it? Nobody wants to believe and live a lie. Yet, they are doing just that. Movies, like this new one, are getting the truth out. Let's be salt and light.


Matthew 9:36-38 says, When Jesus saw the crowds, he had compassion for them, because they were harassed and helpless, like sheep without a shepherd. Then he said to his disciples, “The harvest is plentiful, but the laborers are few; therefore pray earnestly to the Lord of the harvest to send out laborers into his harvest.”

Where is our compassion for the lost and our associated action? What ground are we plowing?
The "good" life is the "God" life and that is true paradise. Let's turn paradise lost into paradise found. Speak the truth in love and enjoy the movie.


In Christ, Brian 

Thursday, October 26, 2017

Let Go and Let God – Part 2

 

Michael continues today that there's a parable in Luke 17 about a servant who after working all day in the field, came into his master's house. His master said, "First prepare my meal and then after I have finished you can sit down and eat." The humble servant served as his master commanded. He did not expect to receive praise for performing his duties in service to his master. The Stoics believed that the duty of every man was acceptance and to endure without questioning; to defer, acquiesce and to resign oneself to the inevitable. Jesus reminded us that we all live in a “fallen world” due to sin. He said, "" In this world ye shall have tribulation.  However, be of good cheer, because I have overcome the world.

Natural disasters are inevitable. According to Romans 8:22, "the whole world groans and travails like birth pains until now." How close together are the spiritual birth pains? As the time between contractions decreases, "the redemption of our bodies", when Christ returns draws nearer. Nothing happens in this world without God allowing it to happen. The Holy Scriptures say, "Happy is the man who condemns not himself in that thing which He alloweth."  

In Romans 8:28, what is it that we know with great confidence? We know that to those who love God and who are called according to his purpose, all things work together for good. Jesus said, If you love me, you'll let go. This is the only way we'll see everything working together for good. Ephesians 4 says, "Walk worthy of the calling wherewith you are called." In loving the Lord, by obedience to his Word, we will learn God's purpose for our journey in this life. When we give God permission to help Himself with our lives, we can continue in His Word as Christ's disciplined followers. And then we shall know the truth and the truth shall set us free.

Romans 8:28 “And we know that all things work together for good to those who love God, to those who are the called according to His purpose.”

Autumn Leaves Backgrounds For Iphone 5

The irony is that to be “set free” means to surrender to His will. "My hands up are up, I surrender," is not a confession that comes naturally for most men and women. However, surrender to our Lord Jesus Christ is the requirement for a life lived more abundantly. When we let go and let God, He does all things well. 

May God richly bless you!

Your brother in Christ, Michael

Wednesday, October 25, 2017

Let Go and Let God - Part 1


This week, Michael writes that there's a story about a young amateur photographer who wanted to make a name for himself by photographing the Grand Canyon. He got up early and set up his tripod, his camera and equipment.  As he walked around looking for the best lighting and perspective for his landscape shot, he backed up and tumbled over the edge of the cliff.  On his way down, he was grasping for shrubbery, bushes and any outcropping he could grab and caught hold of one. As he was hanging on for dear life he yelled, "Can anyone hear me?" He heard an answer, "I'm here to help you."  "Who are you," he replied. "I'm God" came the answer. "What do you want me to do?" God said, "Just let go! I’ll carry you safely down." The man replied, "Is anyone else up there?"

The moral of the story is, "Are we willing to let go and let God?" According to Romans 8:28, in the Amplified Bible, "We are assured and know that God (being a partner in our labor) will cause all things to work together (fitting into his plan) for good to those who love God and are called according to His purpose (and his design.) The order of priority should be God, His glory, and then me. This priority is reversed for most people. In the midst of trials and tribulations, men and women often ask themselves, "What was God thinking?" In Old Testament times, philosophers know, as the Stoics thought, that men should restrain themselves from feelings, emotions, and passions. This was contrary to the teachings of Jesus. However, the Stoics got some things right. They believed in the mind of God; His reason and His all-inspired word. They believed that God was Sovereign and in control of everything. The 1828 Webster’s dictionary defines the word “sovereign” as: 1. Supreme in power; possessing supreme dominion; as a sovereign ruler of the universe. 2. Supreme; superior to all others; chief. God is the sovereign good of all who love and obey Him. The “sovereign” is the one who exercises supreme authority.


 The son of an evangelist wanted to follow in his father's footsteps. But when he saw the suffering of the people around him, he didn't understand the motives of a holy God. He denounced his faith and became an atheist. Each man and woman must decide, "What is truth?" To what and to whom are we willing to commit?  Jesus said, "He who shall lose his life for my sake shall save it. For what shall it profit a man to save his life but lose his soul." Life is full of traumatic experiences. As Oswald Chambers said, "God requires extreme service from you with no explaining on his part and no complaining on yours." We must settle in our minds whether God is Sovereign or not. Who is accountable to whom? Am I answerable to God or is he answerable to me?

Let’s continue Michael’s message on “Letting go” in the next post.

In Christ, Brian

Tuesday, October 24, 2017

Resurrected and Reunified


Ezekiel 37:13-14 Then you shall know that I am the Lord, when I have opened your graves, O My people, and brought you up from your graves. I will put My Spirit in you, and you shall live, and I will place you in your own land. Then you shall know that I, the Lord, have spoken it and performed it,” says the Lord.’”

The Holy Bible (all 66 books, written over a period of roughly 2,000 years by 40 different authors from three continents, who wrote in three different languages) has a common thread of Jesus Christ running through it. I was reading a study of the book of Ezekiel that exposed a piece of this thread and brought it into plain view for examination.

It started that from the opening chapters of Genesis, a close connection is made between life and dwelling before God in the land of His blessed presence. Adam and Eve enjoyed intimacy with the Lord and life before Him while they lived in Eden. But when they broke the covenant, they were cast out of God’s presence and subjected to death (Genesis 1–3). Israel’s punishment for breaking the covenant was exile—being kicked out of the Promised Land where the Lord granted life to His people and sent among the Gentiles to experience slavery, suffering, and death (Deuteronomy 28:64–68). Paul spoke of life outside of the “covenants of promise” as life “having no hope and without God in the world” (Ephesians. 2:12).

Consequently, the ancient Jews who lived in Babylon understood themselves to be
essentially dead. This notion of “death in exile” forms the backdrop against which we can better understand this opening passage . God takes Ezekiel out to a valley and shows the prophet a mass of exposed bones (Ezekiel 37:1–2). Ancient Near Eastern peoples viewed unburied human bodies with particular horror, so the sense conveyed by the image is the old covenant people of God as dead and unclean in their sin. Moreover, the fact that Ezekiel sees only bones conveys the fact that the nation is really and truly dead. It is not going to be able to bring itself back to life. These are not bodies that have only been lying there a few minutes, and so it is possible that they might not really be dead. No, these bodies have been there a long time and have almost fully decomposed. Only God can help them.

The writer points out that the Lord promises that He will bring these bodies—(the nation of Israel)—back to life by His sovereign act. Moreover, He says the proclamation of His Word will accomplish their resurrection. God has Ezekiel prophesy over the bones, and at that point they are restored to life and given the Holy Spirit. The Lord is saying that He will restore His people through the foolishness of preaching. As part of this restoration, Israel and Judah will be reunited as one nation in God’s hand under David, namely, the Messiah.

Christ Jesus fulfills the teaching of today’s passage. Resurrection was central to His
ministry. He began His work in Galilee, the former northern kingdom of Israel, gathering in the descendants of that kingdom along with the descendants of Judah in Judea. Finally, He decrees that the proclamation of the Apostolic gospel is the means of bringing dead sinners back to life.

Matthew 28:18-20 Jesus came and spoke to them, saying, “All authority has been given to Me in heaven and on earth. Go therefore and make disciples of all the nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit, teaching them to observe all things that I have commanded you; and lo, I am with you always,  even to the end of the age.” Amen.

Under the fuller revelation of the new covenant, we see that the resurrection of Israel finds its fullest realization in the resurrection of the saints in the new heaven and the new earth. As Christians, we are the Israel of God, the one community of believers united by faith in Jesus Christ that is made up of believing Jew and believing Gentile alike. Our resurrection and inheritance of the restored creation—through the resurrection of Christ—fulfills Ezekiel.

Blessings

Monday, October 23, 2017

God’s Mercy



Ezekiel 33:11 “As I live, declares the Lord God, I have no pleasure in the death of the wicked, but that the wicked turn from his way and live; turn back, turn back from your evil ways, for why will you die, O house of Israel?”

Ezekiel is one of the books of the Bible that deals with “Eschatology” (the theological study of final events on earth and the end times), which God has communicated to us. Some people are extremely interested in how and when this world ends, while others avoid it like the plague as the thought is disturbing to them. No matter how much this earthly existence means to us though, it will come to an end and the earth will have its final day. All Holy Scripture is good for us, even “end times” and “afterlife” books, passages and verses. 2 Timothy 3:16-17 tells us, “All scripture is given by inspiration of God, and is profitable for doctrine, for reproof, for correction, for instruction in righteousness: That the man of God may be perfect, thoroughly furnished unto all good works.” If eternity in Heaven is the next destination, then we should be balance in our biblical studies and knowledge, and not ignorant and evasive therein.

I recently read that Ezekiel is known for his vivid descriptions of sin and the unthinkable idea among many ancient Jews that God would abandon the Promised Land and the temple. The fact that God continued speaking to His people in Babylon through the prophet Ezekiel proves that He would not allow His chosen nation to pass away. Historically, the prophet went into exile with the group of leading Israelites who were taken to Babylon with King Jehoiachin of Judah in 597/598 B.C. (2 Kings 24:1b–17). One might think that this exile, which confirmed the Lord’s promise to punish the impenitent nation, would have convinced the people who were exiled alongside Ezekiel to believe the prophet and repent. However, disbelief and a strange kind of fatalism persisted among the exiles.

Ezekiel reiterates his calling as Israel’s watchman. Since a watchman sat at the city’s highest point and warned the people when he saw the enemy approaching, Ezekiel was to warn the people of the consequences of their sin. That way, the people could never claim ignorance of the Lord’s standards in order to excuse themselves. Those who did repent when warned would be forgiven and restored (Ezekiel 33:1–9). Unfortunately, the people responded in disbelief. For some reason, the community thought that since
the exile was God’s punishment, He did not desire their restoration. Essentially, they viewed the Lord as taking sadistic pleasure in punishing people for sin, as if punishing people gave Him so much joy that He would not look on a remorseful, repenting penitent people with kindness. Ezekiel corrected this blasphemy, reminding the exiles that God’s attributes are love and mercy, so takes no pleasure in the death of the wicked. He is no sadist who gets joy out of a sinner’s pain in itself. Our Father’s rod of discipline for His people is a means to greater ends—our good and His glory. Thus, He eagerly forgives people when they turn from their evil. I think that we lose sight of that fact also.

This announcement should have made the people rejoice. However, they questioned the Lord’s justice when He pledged to show mercy to repentant sinners. So, did that mean that they wanted justice instead of mercy? No, they also objected when the Lord said that He would condemn all those who turned from serving Him to do evil in His sight (verses 12–20). In their rebellion, the exiles showed that they would not be satisfied even if God were to give them exactly what they asked for.

The study stated that Ezekiel could not win with his original audience. They started out as fatalists who believed that the exile meant God had no desire to forgive them. Then, when Ezekiel told them that they were wrong and that the Lord did indeed want to pardon them, the people said it would not be just for God to do so. Clearly, their hearts were hard. How is our society and culture today? If we are not careful, our hearts can get hard as well. Let us remember that the Lord is eager to forgive the repentant and is just when He does so. Jesus said in John 3:14-18, “As Moses lifted up the serpent in the wilderness, even so must the Son of Man be lifted up, that whoever believes in Him should not perish but have eternal life. For God so loved the world that He gave His only begotten Son, that whoever believes in Him should not perish but have everlasting life. For God did not send His Son into the world to condemn the world, but that the world through Him might be saved. He who believes in Him is not condemned; but he who does not believe is condemned already, because he has not believed in the name of the only begotten Son of God.”

Bottom-line: Sin condemns; Jesus saves.
Thanks be to God.

In Christ, Brian

Sunday, October 22, 2017

The Time is Near


Revelation 1:3 “Blessed is he who reads and those who hear the words of this prophecy, and keep those things which are written in it; for the time is near.

Pastor Kyle started a new Sunday Sermon series on the Book of Revelation last week. Many flock to the books on eschatology (the biblical study of the end times), the branch of theology and the doctrine that deals with the last and final things, as death, the judgment by God, heaven and hell, the end of the world and the events therewith connected. The Holy Word of God was written to and ancient world with a modern background and application for today. These Holy Scriptures communicated truth then, and truth now to you and I. After all, both either lived or live in a “fallen” world in sin and in need of a Savior. The Apostle John wrote of what he saw and hear, not to bring fear, but to bless to us in the message from Creator God and the kingdom of Heaven.

Revelation 1:4-6 “Grace to you and peace from Him who is and who was and who is to come, and from the seven Spirits who are before His throne, and from Jesus Christ, the faithful witness, the firstborn from the dead, and the ruler over the kings of the earth. To Him who loved us and washed us from our sins in His own blood,6 and has made us kings and priests to His God and Father, to Him be glory and dominion forever and ever. Amen."


The book of Revelation was written to challenge the apathetic Follower and to draw the church (the body of Believers) closer to Jesus Christ; to produce a greater sense of holiness, obedience to the Lord and heartfelt worship of God. We need this foundation to stand on and to build upon. The Christian life (including the reading of the book of Revelation) should fill us with true blessing, passionate worship and create the feeling of being “alive in Christ” as He offers and provides the abundant live to the redeemed, regenerated and restored spirit and soul. The time is near; the time is right.

Revelation 1:7-8 Behold, He is coming with clouds, and every eye will see Him, even they who pierced Him. And all the tribes of the earth will mourn because of Him. Even so, Amen. “I am the Alpha and the Omega, the Beginning and the End,” says the Lord, “who is and who was and who is to come, the Almighty.”


In Christ, Brian

Saturday, October 21, 2017

Clash of Kingdoms


1 John 5:19-20 “We know that we are of God, and the whole world lies under the sway of the wicked one. And we know that the Son of God has come and has given us an understanding, that we may know Him who is true; and we are in Him who is true, in His Son Jesus Christ. This is the true God and eternal life.”

The 1828 Webster’s dictionary defines the word “kingdom” as: The territory or country subject to a king; an undivided territory under the dominion of a king or monarch. It is the king’s domain in which he has sovereign dominion. Webster’s goes on to say: In Scripture, the government or universal dominion of God. In the same context, the word Lord is defined as “A master; a person possessing supreme power and authority; a ruler; a governor. In scripture, the Supreme Being; Jehovah.” The word “subject” is defined as: Being under the power and dominion of another. One that owes allegiance to a sovereign and is governed by his laws. Willingly bending the knee to His authority and rule. There is a king in the kingdom of Heaven, the LORD reigns. Do we think about that much?

 Isaiah 52:7 How beautiful upon the mountains are the feet of him who brings good news, who proclaims peace, who brings glad tidings of good things, who proclaims salvation, who says to Zion, “Your God reigns!”

Our Wednesday evening small group Bible study is having the latest series of “That the World May Know” by Ray Vander Laan presented and the clash of the kingdom of God and the kingdom of the enemy (the flesh, the world and the devil) is obvious. But, the loving Lord God by Heaven and Earth comes to redeem this broken world by His grace; to restore faith and peace. Redemption and restoration are offered; not forced.

Deuteronomy 10:12-13 “What does the Lord your God require of you, but to fear the Lord your God, to walk in all His ways and to love Him, to serve the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul, and to keep the commandments of the Lord and His statutes which I command you today for your good?”

In the time of the Apostle Paul, Philippi was a Roman colony that was a miniature copy of Rome. When the kingdom citizens/subjects were in Philippi, they acted as if they were in their capital city, which they represented. In the same way, Christians are citizens of a colony of Heaven and the Lord God’s people should act here like they are in Heaven. God lives here and the redeemed need to walk as Jesus walked; not just bringing the message of the gospel to a lost and dying world, but being the message by living out their lives in obedience to the Lord’s holy Word, Will and Way in front of a dark and sinful world that is watching.    

Jude 3:1 “Beloved, while I was making every effort to write you about our common salvation, I felt the necessity to write to you appealing that you contend earnestly for the faith which was once for all handed down to the saints (meaning those who have been sanctified by the Holy Spirit).”

The word “contend” is defined as: To strive, or to strive against; to struggle in opposition. The word was used in Rome to describe Roman Gladiators in full armor, fighting together, side by side and back to back, as a team against a common opponent. This is the reality of the message of Jesus Christ and the kingdom of God being put on display, sharing the “good News” as an experienced witness of the Lord. This is our mission and we cannot tolerate anything that distorts the message of the gospel (the Greek word “Evangelion"). The whole world needs Salvation, the kingdom of God and the fruit of the Spirit. Anything else is hell.

Ephesians 2:1-5 “And you He made alive, who were dead in trespasses and sins, in which you once walked according to the course of this world, according to the prince of the power of the air, the spirit who now works in the sons of disobedience, among whom also we all once conducted ourselves in the lusts of our flesh, fulfilling the desires of the flesh and of the mind, and were by nature children of wrath, just as the others. But God, who is rich in mercy, because of His great love with which He loved us, even when we were dead in trespasses, made us alive together with Christ (by grace you have been saved).”


In Christ, Brian

Friday, October 20, 2017

Ye are Washed


1 Corinthians 6:9-11 “Do you not know that the unrighteous will not inherit the kingdom of God? Do not be deceived. Neither fornicators, nor idolaters, nor adulterers, nor homosexuals, nor sodomites, nor thieves, nor covetous, nor drunkards, nor revilers, nor extortioners will inherit the kingdom of God. And such were some of you. But you were washed, but you were sanctified, but you were justified in the name of the Lord Jesus and by the Spirit of our God.”

Thursday, October 19, 2017

Do All Things Work for Good? – Part 2


The “greater good” is God's own glory. For those who love the Lord, we know that all things work together for His glory and for our good. God wants to bless. Our definition of blessing means that God will "keep us comfortable." Men live for the comfort of life and for the rush of emotion. However, God does not always allow us to be "emotionally" blessed. 

God orders the universe according to His Word, His "logos" in Greek. He does not order the world according to our "good feeling." God is Sovereign over all. His plan is different from ours. When disasters happen, unbelievers call these "acts of God." However, God allows these things according His own will. In the midst of trials, these are the days that try people's souls. Our reaction to life's difficulties will teach us what's really important.  If our comfort is important to us, then we will be confronted with the truth of God's calling: not my will but thine be done. Why do the innocent suffer?  He who did not spare His own son, how shall he not also freely give us all things

Romans 5:3-5 “We also glory in tribulations, knowing that tribulation produces perseverance; and perseverance, character; and character, hope. Now hope does not disappoint, because the love of God has been poured out in our hearts by the Holy Spirit who was given to us.”

Luke 17 is about a master who told his servant, first prepare my meal and then you can sit down and eat. The point of the story is that we have been called with an opportunity to serve in obedience to His command. As we're in His will, He will walk with us through the valley of the shadow of death. As Paul came to understand, "thy strength is made perfect in my weakness, thy grace is sufficient for me."  He came to the point of acceptance...  Thy will be done.  
Romans chapter 1 tells the story of the downfall and degradation of this world and the systems of the world. However, according to Romans 8:28, we'll be blessed in spite of the trials of this world. God will shake us to the core. The result will determine if our lives are founded upon the sand or if our foundation is upon the rock of ages, Jesus Christ himself.  

It's OK to grieve for those who have lost their lives. It's OK to suffer though the trials of life. However, God is still in control. The solution to the trials of life is Jesus Christ himself. He said, in this world you shall have tribulation. Be of good cheer, I have overcome the world.  
May God richly bless you!


Your brother in Christ, Michael

Wednesday, October 18, 2017

Do All Things Work for Good? – Part 1


This week Michael writes: We're all on a journey that God has prepared for each of us.  For we are His workmanship created in Christ Jesus unto good works which God has foreordained that we should walk therein. The first stage of the journey is finding out what God is like. How well do you know Him?  Paul said, "that I may know him and the power of his resurrection.” The second stage is to understand how He has enabled us with the fruit of the spirit. The third step is knowing how God has gifted each of us. Through the journey we will understand and know His will for our lives as we enter the fourth stage: living according to his calling.  

James 1 states that God has called us to be doers of the Word and not hearers only.  Sometimes people think that pastors can raise the dead. Without a firm commitment to God and His word, it's difficult for people to make a commitment to others, including their own spouses.  If we're to be reconciled, it must be on God's terms ... we must meet each other at the foot of the cross. Jesus' disciples understood what it would mean to be a disciplined follower of Christ. To be a genuine Christian believer in the Lord Jesus Christ, we must deny ourselves, take up our cross and follow him. To say, "Jesus is Lord," means to declare that we are not our own ... He is our master. It's not who we are but rather, whose we are. When we make His word our word, then we can meet others in Christ with a common commitment. We cannot have peace with others until we have the Prince of Peace, our Lord Jesus Christ.

God wants to know, whatever you're doing, are you doing it with a heart of love?  People look at appearances (image is everything), but God looks upon the heart. God doesn't look at your actions, He looks at your heart. Out of the heart are the issues of life.

According to Romans 8:28, all things work together for good to those who love God; to those who are called according to his purpose. 

God is always sovereign. He is all powerful ... His word and His will shall come to pass.  Upon the journey of life, we do not know the end from the beginning ... but he does.  Trusting God depends on our concept and understanding of Him. Knowing Him will determine whether our joy is in the Lord and not in the tragedies and trials of a fallen world. If we've tasted and seen that God is good, then we can know the love of our Heavenly Father. Love is the nature of God himself. He loves us not because of who we are but because of who He is. God is love and in Him is no darkness at all.  


Jesus said, "there is none good, no not one." What is "good?" the 1828 Webster’s dictionary defines the word “good” as: Having moral qualities best adapted to its design and use, or the qualities which God's law requires; virtuous; pious; religious; applied to persons, and opposed to bad, vitious, wicked, evil. Goodness is the nature of God himself. Good must be understood in the light of God's definition, not man's. 

Let's continue Michael's message on "All Things Work for Good" in the next post.
In Christ, Brian

Tuesday, October 17, 2017

Created People


Genesis 1:27 “So God created man in His own image; in the image of God He created him; male and female He created them.”

The truth is that only God can (by definition) create, and whenever this verb (Hebrew: bara) is used in the Bible, the subject of the verb, either explicitly or implicitly, is God! The 1828 Webster’s dictionary defines the word “create” as: To produce; to bring into being from nothing; to cause to exist. In the beginning, God created the heaven and the earth”. - Genesis 1:1. However, certain “progressive creationists” contend that “creation” does not have to be instantaneous, but can be a protracted process—some form of evolution.

Genesis 5:2 “Male and female created he them; and blessed them, and called their name Adam, in the day when they were created.”


This type of scriptural distortion illustrates the extremes to which theistic evolutionists and progressive creationists will go in order to force long evolutionary ages into Scripture. The 1828 Webster’s dictionary defines the word “creature” as: That which is created; every being besides the Creator, or every thing not self-existent. The sun, moon and stars; the earth, animals, plants, light, darkness, air, water, and are the creatures of God.

2 Corinthians 5:17 “Therefore, if anyone is in Christ, he is a new creation; old things have passed away; behold, all things have become new.”

The 1828 Webster’s dictionary defines the word “creation” as: The act of creating; the act of causing to exist; and especially, the act of bringing this world into existence. -Romans 1. Also, The things created; creatures; the world; the universe (by Creator God). When a person receives the Lord Jesus Christ by faith as his Creator and Savior, he does indeed become “a new creation” – 2 Corinthians 5:17, and the miracle of regeneration is always recognized in Scripture as an instantaneous event accomplished by the Creator in the mind and heart of the believer at the time of conversion. 

Ephesians 4:22-24 “that you put off, concerning your former conduct, the old man which grows corrupt according to the deceitful lusts, and be renewed in the spirit of your mind, and that you put on the new man which was created according to God, in true righteousness and holiness.”


Blessings

Monday, October 16, 2017

Rejoice in the Lord


Philippians 4:4
“Rejoice in the Lord always. I will say it again: Rejoice!”

I read that the Christian has a compelling duty to rejoice. Yet it should be a continuous natural reaction to the Gospel of Jesus Christ. Paul stresses the Christian need to rejoice by using the tense in the Greek that specifies a continuing and habitual action. This instruction follows his mention of otherwise faithful believers in the church who were unfortunately pursuing disharmony and dissension. Believers are reminded to restore broken relationships, follow after harmony, peace and rejoice.

One writer states that perhaps the best reason to rejoice is that all believer’s names are written in the “book of life” in heaven. This precious book was mentioned from old times as “a book of remembrance . . . written before him for them that feared the LORD” – Malachi 3:16. Christ mentioned this book as a cause to “rejoice, because your names are written in heavenLuke 10:20. Our rejoicing will continue throughout eternity, for only “they which are written in the Lamb’s book of life” (Revelation 21:27) will be permitted into the Lamb’s presence. Our love for the brothers and sisters in Christ and our hope for eternity are reasons to rejoice, indeed.

Philippians 1:7 “It is right for me to feel this way about all of you, since I have you in my heart and, whether I am in chains or defending and confirming the gospel, all of you share in God’s grace with me.”


Philippians 2:1-2 “Therefore if there is any consolation in Christ, if any comfort of love, if any fellowship of the Spirit, if any affection and mercy, fulfill my joy by being like-minded, having the same love, being of one accord, of one mind.”

Their joy of fellowship was rooted in the love and service of Christ.

Blessings

Sunday, October 15, 2017

Trust in the Lord


Jeremiah 29:11 “For I know the thoughts that I think toward you, says the Lord, thoughts of peace and not of evil, to give you a future and a hope.”

This last Sunday, we had Christian and three time American Ninja Warrior finalist Daniel Gil preaching. He is concerned that there are many that are not welcomed into the hope of Jesus Christ because they have not heard the Gospel. His celebrity from the show has provided him a platform to bring this message of hope to the world.

 There are so many in church, but not following or serving actively. The bible tells us that there is worship going on in heaven 24 hours a day, seven days a week. God has proven Himself faithful. We need to make a change to be the salt and light that the Lord commissioned us to be and is so desperately needed in the darkness of sin and unbelief in our culture today. How many children are being raised in a Christian home and the church? It starts at home, but also get involved in ministry of other who do not know the Lord. The world needs His love, His mercy, His grace, his forgiveness, His Salvation, His joy and His peace with eternal life in heaven as a child of God. The Bible tells us that God desires none to perish, and we should not want anyone to go to Hell either. Ministry is a part of living out our faith in trust. Living out the Word of God, having life and truth in the living Holy Scriptures of the Bible.  

2 Timothy 3:16-17 “All Scripture is God-breathed and is useful for teaching, rebuking, correcting and training in righteousness, so that the servant of God may be thoroughly equipped for every good work.”

Fall in love with His Holy Word and say “yes” to the Lord, who offers to lead your life. God’s promises and plans for both for us and with us. We live in an imperfect world, full of trouble today, but this fallen world does not break our faith. Knowing whose you are and that heaven is where you are going to be with the Lord when you die is the key. There is drama in life every day, so give your life God because every day with Him and for Him is a truly blessed life. It is when we say. “My life is yours”, that we start being “real”, equipping ourselves for ministry, while walking and living by faith. When you know the truth, nobody can argue us out of it.

2 Corinthians 5:7 “For we live by faith, not by sight.”

Share the gospel and encourage people because it is “good news”. Show your trust in the Lord and always ask Him to respond to your prayers and petitions. We are never going to hide anything from God, so He should be the first person that we talk to and trust Him in all our situations in life, for it is written: “Trust in the Lord with all your heart and lean not on your own understanding; in all your ways submit to him, and he will make your paths straight” - Proverbs 3:5-6. Always acknowledge the Lord and Savior Jesus Christ, for it is written: “If anyone acknowledges that Jesus is the Son of God, God lives in them and they in God” - 1 John 4:15. Step out in faith and follow the Holy Spirit, for it is written: “So I say, walk by the Spirit, and you will not gratify the desires of the flesh. For the flesh desires what is contrary to the Spirit, and the Spirit what is contrary to the flesh. They are in conflict with each other, so that you are not to do whatever you want. Since we live by the Spirit, let us keep in step with the Spirit’ - Galatians 5:16-17, 25.


Luke 2:52 “And Jesus grew in wisdom and stature, and in favor with God and man.”

The incarnate second person of the Trinity, Emmanuel, God with us in the flesh, send by the Father for us, is our model, so grow in wisdom and stature, and in favor with God and man. Every day of our life is for Him. If we look, He shows where He is in every situation we encounter. Chasing after your dreams for God are not always easy, but God is in the issues. It’s all about trust as we create milestone markers of amazing memories though living the holy life. If you feel your grip slipping, tighten the grip and hold on tighter. Walk in the skin of being a child of God. Walk daily with the Lord in faith and then you will start thinking, walking, talking and acting like Him, who is transforming our minds. Our destiny is planned and promised by Almighty God. Trust in the Lord.


In Christ, Brian